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calling
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Our vocation is a response to the inner promptings of
God to follow the path of Christ in a variety of different ways. As Christians
our primary calling is rooted in baptism, where we proclaim what God has done
for us in Christ. It is the moment where in our journey of faith we move from
darkness to light, from death to life, from being self-centred to being God
centred.
The Religious Life is one expression of a deeper
commitment and calling to follow in the footsteps of Christ. It is a life-long
commitment to living a life under vows (poverty, chastity and obedience) within
the context of a Community. There is a process of exploration and discernment,
before any final commitment is made to this way of life.
‘To live a life according to the pattern of the holy
Gospel’
As Christians we are all through our baptism called to
follow the example of Christ and to share the Good News in our daily lives. To
do that we need to be nourished and sustained in our faith through prayer, word
and sacrament and are encouraged on our journey by members of the worshipping
community, the Body of Christ. In all that we do Christ is at the centre
influencing our thoughts and words and actions and we are called to love, obey
and serve the Lord in the whole of our lives.
A process of conversion as the call is recognised... For
St Francis the journey of discernment, revelation and understanding was a
gradual one with various turning points along the way. It was as though with
each step another piece of the jigsaw beginning to fit into place. The journey
took him from his early years as the son of a wealthy cloth merchant in Assisi,
enjoying a rich social life with his friends, to begging and preaching in the
same streets where he used to sing the songs of the troubadours. About Francis
Francis’ Dream
As a young man Francis had romantic ideals of knighthood
and so at the age of 20 he went to battle in a dispute between Assisi and the
neighbouring city of Perugia. However he was taken captive and spent a year in
Jail before he returned to Assisi a changed man after his experiences, restless
and searching. In time he continued to pursue his ambition to be a knight, until
one night on the battlefield of Spoleto, he had a dream. In it he recognised
God’s voice asking him to return from the battlefield to Assisi. Slowly it began
to dawn on Francis that God was saying ‘Come Francis, follow me’. In realisation
of this Francis spent the next year living as a hermit, trying to discern what
God was asking of him.
Meeting with a Leper
Another turning point on his journey of conversion was
Francis’ meeting with a leper on the road. He had in the past gone to great
lengths to avoid any contact with these diseased and suffering people. But here
was the moment of truth as he stood face to face with this poor leper. God not
only gave Francis the strength and courage to remain steadfast and to face his
fear but also enabled him to take that extra step and to embrace the leper and
to give him alms. As we hear in ‘The Testament’ of Francis what had been bitter
for him was transformed into a sweetness of body and soul.
San Damiano
During this time Francis spent much time in prayer and
it was kneeling before the crucifix in the broken down church of San Damiano
that the next stage of Francis journey was revealed. Deep in prayer, it was as
though the figure on the crucifix spoke to him, telling him to rebuild the
church. Francis responded with enthusiasm and taking the message literally began
to physically rebuild the church by begging for stones.
The message of the Gospel
Another definitive turning point for Francis was on
hearing the gospel of the day being read in the Church of St Mary of the Angels.
Its message so touched his soul that a fire was ignited in his heart and was to
become the foundation for the rest of his life (Matthew 10: 7, 9-10). In
response to the message Francis clothed himself in a simple tunic, put a rope
around his waist and removed his shoes and began to preach and proclaim the good
news with great simplicity and power.
People are still inspired by this message today and seek
to follow Christ in the way of St Francis. This is how Francis heard the call.
If something of these stories touches you God may be calling you. God still
calls people today.
So what makes our life as Franciscans distinctive from
any other religious community? Through all of creation he was able to see the
hand and work of his Creator God and as Francis’ ‘turning to God’ unfolded, he
was gripped by the fact of the Incarnation and nature became truly holy for him.
He was enthralled by God’s presence in the created order.
At the end of his life Francis completed his song of the
praise of all creation ‘The Canticle of the Creatures’, see also Christ in
creation. The Canticle reflects a transformed relationship with creation, where
everything created, animate or inanimate was revered because of its common
origin in God, the Source of all Being.
So it is from this basis that the First Order Anglican
Franciscan brothers and sisters try to live out their lives in a spirit of
humility, love and joy. Guidance for the living of our daily lives is laid out
in the Rule of Life and in The Principles of the Order, a portion of which is
read each day by the brothers and sisters.
We strive to achieve a balance between the three
elements of Prayer, Work and Study through all of which we seek to serve.
Prayer – We try to live lives rooted in prayer, with the
Eucharist at the heart of all that we do. In addition to the corporate times of
prayer, time is set aside for private prayer and individual communion with God.
See Praying with SSF and How I pray.
Works – As Anglican Franciscans we have no one
particular ministry or apostolate, but have different ministries according to
the gifts that God has given us, However The Principles state that the active
works begin within our houses and gardens, in which 'the tasks are apportioned
among all so that all may contribute their own share to the work of the
household and the cost of their own living.'
Study – We are as Franciscans committed to a life of
on-going formation and seek to find opportunities for study and learning that
will help with that process of life-long learning. Learn more
In all of these areas we offer ourselves as channels of
God’s grace to one another and to all with whom we have contact, seeking to live
our lives in the spirit of humility, love, and joy
Humility – This is about recognising our dependence on
God, and about following the example of Christ who emptied himself, taking the
form of a servant and who on the last night of his life washed his disciples’
feet (c.f. Philippians 2:5-11). We endeavour to live all relationships in
humility towards one another, seeking rather to take the log out of our own eye
than the speck out of the eye of another (c.f. Matthew 7:1-5). The things that
we find difficult in others must be the subject of prayer rather than criticism.
Love – As Jesus said to his disciples: ' I give you a
new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also
should love one another'. (John 13:34 NRSV), so too we seek to make this love a
distinguishing feature of all that we do in the service of Christ.
The Principles say …'brothers and sisters “must be on
their guard against all that injures this love: the bitter thought, the hasty
retort, the angry gesture, and never fail to ask forgiveness of any against whom
they have sinned'.
Joy – Joy is a gift that comes from God, abiding even in
days of darkness and difficulty. Francis was the epitome of joy and indeed his
writing of the Canticle of the Creatures at a time of deteriorating health is an
example of light shining through the darkness, of the joy and beauty of creation
being praised amidst much pain and suffering. As Franciscans therefore “we
delight in laughter and good fellowship”. The Principles SSF
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Phyllis CSF Phyllis joined CSF in 1977 was life professed in
1988 and has lived in various CSF houses during her time in Community. She is
currently in the Birmingham house after the closure of Compton Durville.
It took about 10 years to realise that God might be
calling ME to the Religious Life – from a “no way, not me,Lord” to “Yes,Lord”
after all the buts. I was working overseas when the “Yes” began to emerge, and
sensed that God was asking me to go deeper – not better or busier but deeper. A
transforming sermon on Luke 5 convinced me I could no longer live on the edge
but had to launch into the deep.
Gradually I realised I was not being called to the
community with whom I had been living nor to the community of which I had been
an associate, but to the differently challenging Community of St.Francis. Since
joining CSF in 1977 I have experienced many highs and lows and know that the
religious life is neither a soft option nor an escape or even “tame” as some
people suggest. God uses all the experiences which are brought into Community to
enhance our life and God’s work. My call is not a one-off, I know God continues
to call me to this corporate life of prayer, work and witness and no one is more
surprised than me.
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John SSF John became a novice early in 2002, made his first
profession in 2005, and his life profession on 4th April 2008, the 40th
anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King.
How did I end up joining a Franciscan Community? It
crept up on me and suddenly pounced. I was a Baptist for 25 years, a minister
for half of them. From that tradition I received a love of scripture, a desire
to communicate the gospel effectively and many other blessings. The civil rights
leader Martin Luther King was my hero.
By exploring the retreat movement I discovered the power
of silence to draw us deeper into God and stumbled across the realisation that
there was a significant contemplative dimension to my personality that needed to
be taken seriously if prayer and ministry were to be truly in and of the Holy
Spirit.
The disintegration of my marriage and the accompanying
recognition of guilt and failure prompted a lot of soul searching. Did God still
want me to serve him, or to bow out gracelessly? Confused, I confided in a
spiritual counsellor who accompanied me through the darkness and helped me to
listen for my own inner voice. In my gospel reading one day, someone said to
Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go” (Luke 9:57). My sense that this was
what God wanted to hear from me engendered a mixture of profound gratitude and
terror. Gratitude marginally prevailed. I consented, still fairly clueless as to
where ‘wherever’ might be.
Jean Vanier’s classic book “Community and Growth” had
sat unread on my shelf for years. I opened it, and was captivated by his
descriptions of the call to community and the call of the poor. Both of these
calls reverberated around my heart. Some vague memory induced me to read Brother
Ramon’s ‘Franciscan Spirituality’. This template of discipleship, with its
simplicity and itinerancy, seemed to fit me. It revealed a pattern that made
sense of the broken jumble that was all I could otherwise perceive my life to
be; it presented inspiring challenges; it resurrected my dreams.
Visits to friaries immersed me in liturgical catholic
worship. This required adjustments and rethinking, but proved over time to be
liberating, full of beauty and joy, not the superstitious straitjacket of my
prejudiced imagination. Weirdly I felt I belonged in this strange territory.
Step by step and under the authority and care of the brothers I made the
transition to a new home. All of me came. Positive and negative life
experiences. Grace and grit. All of me was received.
Six years on I have lived in and visited poorer places
and people than before and hope to do more of this. I am still at home moving
from brokenness to wholeness in the company of these lovely, infuriating
Franciscan brothers and sisters, seeking to follow Jesus wherever.
Liz CSF Sr Liz made her first profession in April 2007, and
is presently one of the sisters that have moved to the new house in
Metheringham, Lincolnshire.
My name is Sr Liz, an ordained priest and currently a
sister in First Profession with CSF at Metheringham.
So why am I here?
So five years on, how has it been?
Nicholas Alan SSF Br Nicholas Alan made his life profession in 2002,
and is presently Guardian of Glasshampton Monastery.
Where does a vocation begin? For me it was more of a
growing conviction only recognised in hindsight, but I remember a time when
there was something about the words ‘monk’ and ‘monastery’ that kept leaping out
of the page in books that I was reading. I was studying Theology at university
at the time, and finding some of the critical theologians hard going. It was the
books by monks and nuns that really captured my imagination – people like the
Cistercian Thomas Merton, or Dom Henri Le Saux, a Benedictine who went to India
taking the name Abhishiktananda, a Christian in Hindu robes. Here was a faith
lived with integrity and abandonment to God, which called for a response from my
heart.
It took me a while to make up my mind though. First I
wrote to various communities for men in the Church of England, asking if I could
live alongside their community for a while. They all seemed to say, Why not try
the Franciscans? So I went to visit Hilfield Friary in Dorset, but I knew it was
too early for me to join. I wanted to see the world. Eight years later, now
living in Korea, I knew that it was time to return and get on with what I
believed God had been patiently calling me to do.
Many things drew me to the Franciscans. Partly it was
the corporate commitment to prayer at regular times each day. I had tried to do
that on my own, using the SSF Office Book and re-connecting in spirit with the
SSF, but it was so difficult on my own to maintain the discipline. I realised I
needed the help of others in my prayers. And I didn’t like living alone.
Community seemed to offer the balance of individual space and the companionship
of others on a spiritual path. And Francis, full of wisdom’s folly, was a
refreshing and exhilarating example of poverty and joy in his love of God and
all his brothers and sisters.
But in the end, what kept me in the SSF was simply that
these brothers and sisters were the people I had come to know and love. They
were and are my family. How could I think of leaving them? And it wasn’t just
them. Friendships with members of other communities, not just Anglican but Roman
Catholic, Orthodox, and Buddhist too were increasingly important to me. They
were all part of what I had become. Of course the desire for a wife and family
was still there, but somewhere along the line a choice had been made and one
path followed with another left unexplored.
And in this company of brothers and sisters, both those
with whom I live and pray and those I have visited and come to know as friends,
with these companions I honestly feel that living this life makes a difference.
People visit our communities and are changed: refreshed and revitalised in
spirit, strengthened to live their own lives to the full. People and groups we
visit find something in this crazy choice of ours that inspires them, just as I
was inspired as a student. When you live this life for a while, you soon realise
that it is not you who work any of these miracles, it can only be God. And if
God is here, then the one thing necessary has already been found.
Although I attended both a Church Primary and Junior school I had no real
interest in regularly attending a Church, yet I did have an over-riding sense of
God in my life and a sense of God wanting me to serve him. I had no real
knowledge of the Religious Life or of what it was about yet it was present from
early on. When I left school and trained for a job in Law that feeling persisted
and the continuous nagging away inside made me realise that I needed to
investigate the religious life if I was to have any real peace.
I read a magazine article about the Religious Life in the Anglican Church and
consequently obtained a list of religious communities, and literally went down
that list with a pin; some of the communities sounded too strict, had too much
silence, too much enclosure and so it came down to a choice between a
Benedictine community which had a very attractive and appealing brochure and the
Franciscans. The Franciscans invited me to a weekend for men who were
enquiring about the Franciscan way of life.
My visit to Hilfield Friary did not tick all the boxes for what I saw as an
ideal vocation, but the Friary had a simplicity and a ministry among wayfarers
and the needy, which I found very compelling. The then Minister
Provincial interviewed me and I do not think he was entirely convinced
about accepting me, but agreed to take me for a trial period - and I am still
here 41 years later!
Do I have regrets? Yes, of course! But aren't there in any walk of life? Has
it been easy? Of course not, but on reflection why should it be? But what
I do know is that there is nothing better nor more satisfying than serving the
Lord.
Far from a running away from the world or being cut off from it, I have been
more exposed as a friar to the world than I could every have imagined. I
have travelled and worked and prayed in far-flung places; I have lived in a
tenement flat in Glasgow's gangland; I have helped people in their own spiritual
journeys at our house of prayer and I have discovered that God ministers to me
through the variety of people I have lived with or ministered to within the
Franciscan community and beyond. 40+ years as a 'Brother' and there
is still room for improvement - now there's a challenge!
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If this doesn’t sound like you, there are other ways of being Franciscan
Discernment:
Visiting different religious houses is a good place to start, to begin to familiarise yourself with the people who are actually living out a religious vocation. As you feel drawn to a particular community you need to begin to talk to the person responsible for vocations within that community. For the Franciscan order that is the Novice Guardian for either the brothers or the sisters.
Talking to someone who knows you really well and who can pray with you for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Read some of the current information about the Franciscan Community in our brochures: A Franciscan Way (opens a new window, PDF format).
Making an enquiry:
Contact the Novice Guardian of the Brothers of Sisters, preferably either by letter or email.
For the Brothers: Novice
Guardian, The Friary of St Francis, Alnmouth, Alnwick, Northumberland, NE66 3NJ, Telephone: 01665 830213, email: noviceguardianssf@franciscans.org.uk
For the Sisters: Novice Guardian, Community of St
Francis, St Matthew's House, 25 Kamloops Crescent, Leicester LE1 2HX
Making a Visit:
Check the availability of the Novice Guardian and arrange to come and stay. Contact details as above.
Applying:
The Novice Guardian will guide you through this process.
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Ongoing Formation - Stages on the way…
Having made contact with the brothers or sisters, there
will be an opportunity to come and live alongside as an Enquirer for a short
period to get a better feel for the way of life. If it feels right to take the
next step and the community is in agreement you will return to your own home to
continue the process of discernment and to complete an application form, which
includes providing references, and a medical questionnaire, before being invited
for an interview. If accepted you will be admitted as an Aspirant, one who has
been invited to come and test their vocation to the religious life. A date will
be arranged for you to come to one of the houses to begin that process.
When you arrive you will be admitted as a Postulant.The
sisters receive a Tau Cross as a visible symbol of their association with the
community and the brothers wear a brown over smock. During this time you begin
to live community life and get involved with some of the daily tasks, so that
you are able to deepen your experience of this way of life. After a three to six
month postulancy, if you and the community feel it is right, the next stage is
to begin a three to four year period as a Novice.
As a novice you receive the brown habit and a rope with
a single knot signifying a commitment to the community. During this period you
are accompanied on the journey by the Novice Guardian,undertake some study and
receive formation in the Franciscan way of life, and can expect to experience
different aspects of the life in various houses. The novitiate can be ended by
either side at any time.
In consultation with the Novice Guardian and the
Minister Provincial novices can apply to be allowed to make vows. If elected by
the Provincial Chapter novices make their First Profession in vows (poverty,
chastity and obedience) and receive a rope with three knots to represent these
three vows.
Living a vowed life The vows are commitments that we
make to a way of life that makes demands on the whole person. The vows are not
ends in themselves, but are a way of helping us to live the gospel, to follow
more closely in the footsteps of Christ and to share with others the love of
God. Despite what people often think the vows bring with them an immense amount
of freedom and liberation.
As Franciscans (in common with many other religious
communities) we take the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.
Poverty – The person called to the religious life feels
a desire to live simply and the vow of poverty means assuming a new relationship
with things. This means living with our brothers and sisters in simplicity with
an openness of heart – sharing all that we have both materially and spiritually.
This vow expresses dependence on and trust in God’s care for us. We receive no
individual pay, but any income goes into the corporate ‘pot’ to be shared as
needed and so we live as a family having all things in common.
Thus the vow of poverty endeavours to encourage us to
seek the riches of Christ, to be found not in material possessions but within
our own being, in our relationship with Christ and in our relationship with
others. We are encouraged to have our heart set on that spiritual home where our
treasure lies.
Chastity – This vow is about “giving ourselves in
undivided love to Christ, in celibacy for the sake of the Kingdom of God and in
his love for all” (SSF Profession Service). In other words the primary
relationship is that with God. The calling to celibacy is a vocation in its own
right and those who embrace this calling do so because that is how they believe
God is asking them to serve him. It is a vow of immense liberation. There is a
greater availability to God and a greater freedom to respond to where God might
be calling us to be as there are no other committed relationships to consider.
In making this commitment there is a mutual love and care for one another, to
which we witness in our daily relationships and through which we endeavour to
make the light of Christ shine to all whom we meet.
Obedience – This vow is about listening and responding
to God, as God’s will is made known through the people and situations of life,
and is firmly rooted in prayer. Those living this form of life commit themselves
to listening to God through the decisions of the community and through those who
are appointed to positions of leadership. If we look to Jesus as an example, his
obedience points to the Father’s will and was made possible because they were
united as one in and through prayer.
After a period of three to seven years First Professed
brothers and sisters can apply to be elected to Life Profession by the
Provincial Chapter.
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Section 1
Click here for the "About
section", where you will find more information regarding St Francis, St Clare,
the time the saints lived in, the Pilgrimage to Assisi, Franciscan tradition and
why after you?
Section 4
Click here for "Franciscan
News" section
Section 7 - Becoming a Franciscan
Click here for some of our stories
Click here for Living as Franciscans
Click here for what next?
Click here for Growing into the life
Click here for other sections
Franciscan calling
Some of our stories
Well the
‘seed’ of Community has been around for some time. Over the years in times of
quiet reflection I have felt God’s promise of a deeper and more intimate
relationship with him, a constant searching and yearning. It was during the Life
Profession Service of another sister, that I (rather alarmingly) felt an
overwhelming sense of ‘belonging’ and knew that this was something that I needed
to explore further. Drawn by the freedom, joy and spontaneity I had seen, I
began to hear myself asking those unspoken questions, knowing in my depths that
I had to step out in faith and trust (although I confess rather tentatively and
not without much apprehension!). There was something about searching for a
corporate rhythm, routine and discipline of life that was rooted in prayer,
because I firmly believe that all that I do has to come from that solid
foundation, from that centre of being in relationship with God, a relationship
that is renewed daily in prayer, word and sacrament.
Well, it has certainly been a time of great change,
transformation and revelation, of much emotional upheaval and turmoil but also a
time of great liberation as the different aspects of my life begin to come
together, like the pieces of a jigsaw. Each piece is being carefully refined and
transformed as I am brought to a greater place of healing and wholeness in God’s
love and as I begin to really discover the person God created me to be.
Brother Benedict has recently moved to the new house in
Cowgate Newcastle upon Tyne, having previously lived at Glasshampton Friary for
many years where he was Guardian and Novice Guardian. He is now the
Assistant Minister for the European Province.
Living as Franciscans
The stories of
Francis and Clare have inspired men and women through the ages to follow Christ
in the Franciscan Way and there are many today who feel called to this way of
life, living in community under the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience
What next?
What to do if you think you may be called to join us in the First Order...
Basic Requirements:
Aged between 21 – 45
Reasonably fit, both physically and psychologically
Single, with no dependent children
Free of debt apart from student loans
A member of a church in the Anglican Communion (e.g. Church of England; Scottish Episcopal Church; Church of Ireland; Church in Wales)
The process of Discernment is a two-way process, at the heart of which is prayer – are the Franciscans right for you – and are you right for the Franciscans? It is a process that continues throughout the various stages of exploration and continues until Life Profession – anything between seven and eleven years later.
Telephone: 0116 253 9158, email: noviceguardiancsf@franciscans.org.uk
Growing into the life
Other sections